The two main traditions of Indian classical music are Carnatic music, which is found predominantly in the peninsular regions, and Hindustani music, which is found in the northern, eastern and central regions. The basic concepts of this music includes shruti (microtones), swaras (notes), alankar (ornamentations), raga (melodies improvised from basic grammars), and tala (rhythmic patterns used in percussion). Its tonal system divides the octave into 22 segments called shrutis, not all equal but each roughly equal to a quarter of a whole tone of Western music.

The Hindustani music tradition diverged from Carnatic music around the 13th-14th centuries CE.[citation needed] The practice of singing based on notes was popular even from the Vedic times where the hymns in Sama Veda, an ancient religious text, were sung as Samagana and not chanted. Developing a strong and diverse tradition over several centuries, it has contemporary traditions established primarily in India but also in Pakistan and Bangladesh. In contrast to Carnatic music, the other main Indian classical music tradition originating from the South, Hindustani music was not only influenced by ancient Hindu musical traditions, historical Vedic philosophy and native Indian sounds but also enriched by the Persian performance practices of the Mughals. Classical genres are dhrupad, dhamar, khyal, tarana and sadra, and there are also several semi-classical forms.

The present of Carnatic music can be traced to the 15th - 16th centuries AD and thereafter. It originated in South India during the rule of Vijayanagar Empire. Like Hindustani music, it is melodic, with improvised variations, but tends to have more fixed compositions. It consists of a composition with improvised embellishments added to the piece in the forms of Raga Alapana, Kalpanaswaram, Neraval and, in the case of more advanced students, Raga, Tala, Pallavi. The main emphasis is on the vocals as most compositions are written to be sung, and even when played on instruments, they are meant to be performed in a singing style (known as gāyaki). There are about 7.2 million ragas (or scales) in Carnatic Music,[citation needed] with around 300 still in use today.

Rabindranath Tagore's Bengali-language initials are worked into this "Ro-Tho" wooden seal, stylistically similar to designs used in traditional Haida carvings. Tagore embellished his manuscripts with such art.

Rabindranath Tagore was a towering figure in Indian music. Writing in Bengali, he created a library of over 2,000 songs now known by Bengalis as rabindra sangeet whose form is primarily influenced by Hindustani classical, sub-classicals, Carnatic, western, bauls, bhatiyali and different folk songs of India. Many singers in West Bengal and Bangladesh base their entire careers on the singing of Tagore musical masterpieces. The national anthem of India and national anthem of Bangladesh are Rabindra Sangeets.

Bihu (Assamese: বিহু) is the festival of New Year of Assam falling on mid April. This is a festival of nature and mother earth where the first day is for the cows and buffalos. Second day is for the man. Bihu dances and songs accompanied by traditional drums and wind instruments are essential part of this festival. Bihu songs are energetic and with beats to welcome the festive spring. Assamese drums (dhol), Pepa(horm usually made from buffalo horn), gogona are major instruments used.

Dandiya or Raas is a form of Gujarati cultural dance that is performed with sticks. The present musical style is derived from the traditional musical accompaniment to the folk dance. It is practiced in (mainly) the state of Gujarat. There is also another type of dance and music associated with Dandiya/Raas called Garba.

Uttarakhandi folk music had its root in the lap of nature. The pure and blessed music has the feel and the touch of nature and subjects related to nature. The folk music primarily is related to the various festivals, religious traditions, folk stories and simple life of the people of Uttarakhand. Thus the songs of Uttarakhand are a true reflection of the Cultural Heritage and the way people live their lives in the Himalayas. Musical instruments used in Uttarakhand music include the dhol, damoun, turri, ransingha, dholki, daur, thali, bhankora and masakbhaja. Tabla and Harmonium are also used, but to a lesser extent. The main languages are Kumaoni and Garhwali.

Lavani comes from the word Lavanya which means love. This is one of the most popular forms of dance and music that is practiced all over Maharashtra. It has in fact become a necessary part of the Maharashtrian folk dance performances. Traditionally, the songs are sung by female artistes, but male artistes may occasionally sing Lavanis. The dance format associated with Lavani is known as Tamasha. Lavani is a combination of traditional song and dance, which particularly performed to the enchanting beats of 'Dholaki', a drum-like instrument. Dance performed by attractive women wearing nine-yard saris. They are sung in a quick tempo. The verve, the enthusiasm, the rhythm and above all the very beat of India finds an expressive declaration amidst the folk music of India, which has somewhat, redefined the term "bliss". Lavani originated in the arid region of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.

Rajasthan has a very diverse cultural collection of musician castes, including Langas, Sapera, Bhopa, Jogi and Manganiyar (lit. "the ones who ask/beg"). Rajasthan Diary quotes it as a soulful, full-throated music with harmonious diversity. The melodies of Rajasthan come from a variety of instruments. The stringed variety include the Sarangi, Rawanhattha, Kamayacha, Morsing and Ektara. Percussion instruments come in all shapes and sizes from the huge Nagaras and Dhols to the tiny Damrus. The Daf and Chang are a favourite of Holi (the festival of colours) revellers. Flutes and bagpipers come in local flavours such as Shehnai, Poongi, Algoza, Tarpi, Been and Bankia.

Rajasthani music is derived from the combination of string instruments, percussion instruments and wind instruments accompanied by renditions of folk singers. It enjoys a respectable presence in Bollywood music as well.

Jazz pioneers such as John Coltrane—who recorded a composition entitled 'India' during the November 1961 sessions for his album Live At The Village Vanguard (the track was not released until 1963 on Coltrane's album Impressions)—also embraced this fusion. George Harrison (of the Beatles) played the sitar on the song "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)" in 1965, which sparked interest from Shankar, who subsequently took Harrison as his apprentice. Jazz innovator Miles Davis recorded and performed with musicians like Khalil Balakrishna, Bihari Sharma, and Badal Roy in his post-1968 electric ensembles. Virtuoso jazz guitarist John McLaughlin spent several years in Madurai learning Carnatic music and incorporated it into many of his acts including Shakti which featured prominent Indian musicians. Other Western artists such as the Grateful Dead, Incredible String Band, the Rolling Stones, the Move and Traffic soon incorporated Indian influences and instruments, and added Indian performers. Legendary Grateful Dead frontman Jerry Garcia joined guitarist Sanjay Mishra on his classic CD "Blue Incantation" (1995). Mishra also wrote an original score for French Director Eric Heumann for his film Port Djema (1996) which won best score at Hamptons film festival and The Golden Bear at Berlin. in 2000 he recorded Rescue with drummer Dennis Chambers (Carlos Santana, John McLaughlin et al.) and in 2006 Chateau Benares with guests DJ Logic and Keller Williams (guitar and bass).

Though the Indian music craze soon died down among mainstream audiences, die hard fans and immigrants continued the fusion. In 1985, a beat oriented, Raga Rock hybrid called Sitar Power by Ashwin Batish reintroduced sitar in western nations. Sitar Power drew the attention of a number of record labels and was snapped up by Shanachie Records of New Jersey to head their World Beat Ethno Pop division.

In the late 1980s, Indian-British artists fused Indian and Western traditions to make the Asian Underground. Since the 1990s, Canadian born musician Nadaka who has spent most of his life in India, has been creating music that is an acoustic fusion of Indian classical music with western styles. One such singer who has merged the Bhakti sangeet tradition of India with the western non-Indian music is Krishna Das and sells music records of his musical sadhana. Another example is Indo-Canadian musician Vandana Vishwas who has experimented with western music in her 2013 album Monologues.

Indian pop music is based on an amalgamation of Indian folk and classical music, and modern beats from different parts of the world. Pop music really started in the South Asian region with the famous playback singer Ahmed Rushdi's song ‘Ko Ko Korina’ in 1966, followed initially by Mohammad Rafi in the late 1960s and then by Kishore Kumar in the early 1970s .[9]

The rock music "scene" in India is small compared to the filmi or fusion musicality "scenes" but as of recent years has come into its own, achieving a cult status of sorts. Rock music in India has its origins in the 1960s when international stars such as the Beatles visited India and brought their music with them. These artists' collaboration with Indian musicians such as Ravi Shankar and Zakir Hussain have led to the development of raga rock. International short wave radio stations such as The Voice of America, BBC, and Radio Ceylon played a major part in bringing Western pop, folk, and rock music to the masses. Indian rock bands began to gain prominence only much later, around the late 1980s.

Hip hop music in India had started at around 1990 and Baba Sehgal is credited as India's first rapper. Hip Hop music became all the more famous with the song 'Pettai Rap' from the Tamil movie Kadhalan starring Prabhu Deva.Rap/Hip Hop was often used in the regional movies as fillers in between songs and off late has started to become mainstream songs. London based The Rishi Rich Project, Bally Sagoo and Canadian based Raghav further laid steady foundations for Hip Hop/RnB music in India.Honey Singh is the most popular Mainstream Hip Hop artist in India. His album International Villager made over a million dollar making it the highest grossing Punjabi album of all time.He also started producing music in Bollywood and became the highest paid singer in India.

Indian based Biju Gangadharan, also known as the "father of Sanskrit rock", introduced rock music with Sanskrit Lyrics by many young musicians from late musicians.[clarification needed] Canadian based hip hop artist Ishq Bector became a success after the release of his superhit single 'Aye Hip Hopper'.

Malaysian based Yogi B and Natchatra brought in the culture of Tamil rap in India, a style further explored by Ruben King, particularly in the song "Kadhal".[30]
Yogi B, as part of Poetic Ammo, achieved success when they won at the Malaysian Anugerah Industri Muzik (AIM)(Music Awards) 1999, 2000 and 2001. Yogi B is now the most critically acclaimed Kollywood (the Tamil Movie Industry) rapper because of his work on the 2007 movie Pollathavan.
There are about 2,000 rappers in India, rapping in different languages like Punjabi, Hindi, Bhojpuri, Khasi etc.[31]

In 2015, Indian American rapper Taizu gained some traction with the release of his debut video BurnOutZ with Stonelove J and Grammy Award-winning producer Omen.

There has been a steady growth of underground and independent hip-hop artists as well who are making a name for themselves in India. Vineet Nair started off his music career as an independent rapper from Mumbai in 2010 and was featured in VH1 India Music Diaries in 2016.[32] Cryptographik Street Poets, an underground rap duo from Shillong, formed in mid 2010 have been praised for their subliminal conscious lyricism and provocative social and political references in their lyrical content.[33][34]

The spread and following of Western classical music in India is almost entirely non-existent. It is mainly patronized by the Indian Zoroastrian community and small esoteric groups with historical exposure to Western classical music. Another esoteric group with significant patronage is the Protestant Christian community in Chennai and Bangalore.[citation needed] Western Music education is also severely neglected and pretty rare in India. Western keyboard, drums and guitar instruction being an exception as it has found some interest; mainly in an effort to create musicians to service contemporary popular Indian music. Many reasons have been cited for the obscurity of Western classical music in India, a country rich in its musical heritage by its own right, however the two main reasons are an utter lack of exposure and a passive disinterest in what is considered esoteric at best. Also, the difficulty in importing Western musical instruments and their rarity has also contributed to the obscurity of classical Western music.[citation needed]

Despite more than a century of exposure to Western classical music and two centuries of British colonialism, classical music in India has never gained more than 'fringe' popularity. Many attempts to popularize Western classical music in India have failed in the past due to disinterest and lack of sustained efforts.[citation needed] Today, Western classical music education has improved with the help of numerous institutions in India. Institutions like KM Music Conservatory (founded by Oscar-winning Composer A.R.Rahman), Calcutta School of Music, Bangalore School of Music, Eastern Fare Music Foundation,[35]Delhi School of Music, UstadGah Foundation, Delhi Music Academy, Guitarmonk and many others are dedicated to contributing to the progress or growth and supporting Western classical music. In 1930, notable Mehli Mehta set up the Bombay Symphony Orchestra. There is 'Melody Academy' in Darjeeling established in the early 1980s by Mr. Jiwan Pradhan who single handedly has brought the western music in the hills of Darjeeling which is very rich in its musical heritage.

In 2006, the Symphony Orchestra of India was founded, housed at the NCPA in Mumbai. It is today the only professional symphony orchestra in India and presents two concert seasons per year, with world-renowned conductors and soloists.